The present invention relates to a brake light illuminator that indicates the location of the emergency brake when the ignition is on, thereby allowing the driver to find the emergency brake without fumbling or hesitation when the need arises to use it.
The emergency brake, or parking brake, is seldom used by a high percentage of vehicle drivers or operators. Therefore, when an emergency arises requiring a quick stop, standard brake failure, etc., most of these drivers would at least hesitate before applying an emergency brake if they thought of it and its location at all.
The prior art does not address this problem at all. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,694,113 (Chen) describes an emergency brake monitor to remind a driver to release the emergency brake before the automobile starts to move.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,305,983 (Muth), U.S. Pat. No. 2,234,607 (Riedmaier), U.S. Pat. No. 2,343,394 (Blomberg et al.) and U.S. Pat. No. 2,503,553 (Hollins) describe a brake indicator light system in which the light is off when the parking brake is fully released.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,031,202 (Bier) describes an alarm system that is activated when the ignition switch is on and the parking brake is applied.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,381,269 (Freibaugh et al.) describes a signal device for automobiles with automatic transmissions that gives a warning when the ignition is off and the gear shift lever is not in the park position.